Welcome to the CSSGJ

The Centre for the Study of Social and Global Justice (CSSGJ) is an independent research centre created to provide a focus for critically oriented education, teaching, and activism, in relation to the most fundamental question facing us as citizens of the world: how should we live? In other words, CSSGJ was created as a space for critical reflection, education, and research in many different facets of social and global justice.

The CSSGJ is excited about the prospects of reaching a larger audience by exploiting the opportunities offered by the internet and being able to invite speakers from all around the world, without the financial constraints of having to pay for transport costs and hotels.

We will hold regular online events available to all, including speakers from various countries and continents – all focused on promoting social and global justice and peace through education.

Consonant with its commitment to social justice, CSSGJ ensures a great variety of speakers from different ethnic and gender backgrounds, as well as countries.

We hope to develop a space where those interested in progressive education and matters of social and global justice and peace can congregate online and overcome the barriers of physical distance between us.

The CSSGJ Constitution can be found here: https://cssgj.org/cssgj-constitution/

Our website can be found at https://cssgj.org and our Youtube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@cssgj/videos Our events are listed at the CSSGJ Eventbrite site https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/o/centre-for-the-study-of-social-and-global-justice-31319982869  

Who Is It For?

The centre is there for everyone who is interested in issues of social and global justice. Members are expected to have a progressive, broadly left political position.

How Does It Work?

  • We run a weekly/fortnightly seminar series during academic semesters in the UK as well as host ad hoc lectures, lecture series, workshops and reading groups throughout the year.
  • CSSGJ’s leadership is elected every three years by centre members. The initial Co-Directors are Oliver Dodd, Tony Burns, and Andreas Bieler.
  • We invite speakers on a wide range of subjects and welcome suggestions from members.
  • The CSSGJ is committed to exploring various avenues to promote freely available education aimed at promoting social and global justice.
  • CSSGJ is a broad-based organization. It is not formally associated with any political party, there is no ‘party line’, and its members hold different views regarding the issues which are addressed.

What Does It Cost?

Membership fees are £25 per year. A concessionary rate of £10 per year is available for students, retirees, unwaged people, and those outside Europe and North America.  

To join the CSSGJ. please go to https://cssgj.org/cssgj-membership/

Current CSSGJ Co-Directors

Sinem Bal is a researcher in the EU-funded Marie Skłodowska-Curie Innovative Education Network project at Boğaziçi University, Istanbul. Previously, she was a postdoctoral researcher at the School of Politics and International Relations, University of Nottingham. She specialises in Gender and Politics, Social Movements, Refugees, Human Rights and European Integration. 

Andreas Bieler is a Professor of Political Economy in the School of Politics and International Relations at Nottingham University. His general expertise is in the area of International Relations/International Political Economy theories and the analysis of European integration as well as resistance to neo-liberal globalisation with a particular emphasis on the possible role of trade unions.

Tony Burns is a Professor of Political Theory in the School of Politics and International Relations at the University of Nottingham. His most recent publications include Social Institutions and the Politics of Recognition, Volume 1: From the Ancient Greeks to the Reformation (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020) and Social Institutions and the Politics of Recognition, Volume 2: From the Reformation to the French Revolution (Rowman & Littlefield, 2020).

Oliver Dodd is an ESRC-funded PhD candidate in the School of Politics and International Relations at the University of Nottingham. His general area of expertise is in international political economy and (counter)insurgency with a focus on Latin America. His doctoral project analyses the origins and development of the Colombian Civil War leading to a peace agreement in 2016.

Elif Uzgören is an Associate Professor of International Relations at Dokuz Eylul University, İzmir. Her research interests are critical political economy, European studies and Turkish politics. Her work appeared at journals such as Journal of Balkan and Near Eastern Studies, Globalizations, Southeast European and Black Sea Studies. Her recent work will be published as a book manuscript ‘The Political Economy of Turkey’s Integration to Europe: Uneven development and hegemony’ by Manchester University Press.